Privacy Policy
Austbrokers Central Coast Pty Ltd ABN 21 103 193 406 is bound by the National Privacy Principles (NPP’s) as specified by the Privacy Act 1988, as amended, which sets out standards for the collection, use, disclosure and handling of personal information.
Personal information is essentially information or an opinion about a living individual whose identity is apparent or can reasonably be ascertained from the information or opinion (e.g. a name and address). Our privacy policy applies to any personal information we collect, use or disclose after 21st December 2001. It does not apply to our employee records.
Clients and any other persons are able to obtain a copy of the policy on application.
Definitions
The National Privacy Principles as summarised by the Privacy Commissioner are as follows:-
NPP1 Collection
Collection of personal information must be fair, lawful and not intrusive. A person must be told the organisation’s name, the purpose of the collection, that the person can get access to their personal information and what happens if the person does not give the information.
NPP2 Use & Disclosure
An organisation should only use or disclose information for the purpose it was collected unless the person has consented, or the secondary purpose is related to the primary purpose and a person would reasonably expect such use or disclosure, or the use is for direct marketing in specified circumstances, or in circumstances related to public interest such as law enforcement and public or individual health and safety.
NPP3 Data Quality
An organisation must take reasonable steps to make sure that the personal information it collects, uses or discloses is accurate, complete and up-to-date.
NPP4 Data Security
An organisation must take reasonable steps to protect the personal information it holds from misuse and loss and from unauthorised access modification and disclosure.
NPP5 Openness
An organisation must have a policy document outlining its information handling practices and make this available to anyone who asks to view this document.
NPP6 Access & Correction
An organisation must give an individual access to personal information it (the organisation) holds about the individual on request, subject however to some important exceptions.
NPP7 Identifiers
An organisation must not adopt, use or disclose, an identifier that has been assigned by a Commonwealth government ‘agency’.
NPP8 Anonymity
An organisation must give people the option to transact anonymously whenever it is lawful and practicable to do so.
NPP9 Transborder Data Flows
An organisation can only transfer personal information to a recipient in a foreign country in circumstances where the information will have appropriate protection.
NPP10 Sensitive Information
An organisation must not collect sensitive information unless the individual has consented, it is required by law – or in other special specified circumstances (for example where it relates to health services provision and individual or public health or safety).
Sensitive information is information or an opinion about an individual’s racial or ethnic origin; or political opinions; or membership of a political association; or religious beliefs or affiliations; or philosophical beliefs; or membership of a professional or trade association; or membership of a trade union; or sexual preferences or practices; or criminal record, that is also personal information or health information about an individual.
Health information is:
- information or an opinion about the health or a disability (at any time) of an individual; or an individual’s expressed wishes about the future provision of health services to him or her; or a health service provided, or to be provided, to an individual, that is also personal information;
- other personal information collected to provide, or in providing, a health service; or
- other personal information about an individual collected in connection with the donation, or intended donation, by the individual of his or her body parts, organs or body substances.
How & Why We Collect Personal Information
We collect personal information either directly from the relevant individual or indirectly from third parties, to be able to provide you with our various services. These services include insurance broking, claims management, risk management consulting, and other forms of insurance services (including premium funding), employee benefits, superannuation and investment advisory services.
Other purposes include development and identification of products and services that may interest our clients, market or customer satisfaction research, developing and administering alliances and other arrangements with other organisations in relation to the promotion, administration and use of our respective products and services. Please visit our other website headings for more information on our services.
How We Use & Disclose Personal Information
We do not use or disclose personal information for any purpose that is unrelated to our services and that you would not reasonably expect (except with your consent).
We have a duty to maintain the confidentiality of our clients’ affairs, including personal information. Our duty of confidentiality applies except where disclosure of your personal information is with your consent or compelled by law.
We disclose personal information to third parties who we believe are necessary to assist us in managing your insurance needs. For example, we will usually provide information to insurers, reinsurers, other insurance intermediaries, and advisors such as loss adjusters, lawyers, accountants and others involved in the claims management process. We limit the use and disclosure of any personal information provided by us to such third parties to the specific purposes for which we supplied it (except with the individual’s consent).
We take reasonable steps to ensure that whenever we collect, use or disclose personal information, it is accurate, complete and up-to-date.
If the required personal information is not provided we, or any involved third parties, may not be able to provide appropriate services.
What We Expect of You & Third Parties We Deal With
When you provide us with personal information about other individuals, we rely on you to have made them aware that you will or may provide their information to us, the purposes we use it for, the types of third parties we disclose it to and how they can access it (as described in this document). If it is sensitive information, we rely on you to have obtained their consent to the above. If you have not done either of these things, you must tell us before you provide the relevant information.
If we provide you with personal information, you and your representatives must only use it for the purposes agreed to.
Where relevant, you must meet the requirements of the National Privacy Principles set out in the Privacy Act 1988, when collecting, using, disclosing and handling personal information on our behalf. You must also ensure that your agents, employees and contractors meet the above requirements.
Help Us to Ensure We Hold Accurate Information
Austbrokers Central Coast takes all reasonable precautions to ensure that the personal information we collect, use and disclose is accurate, complete and up-to-date. However, the accuracy of that information depends to a large extent on the information you and/or your authorised representatives provide. It is your responsibility to advise our office:
- if there are any errors in your personal information; and
- to keep us up-to-date with changes to personal information such as name or address
Security of your Personal Information
We endeavour to protect any personal information that we hold from misuse and loss, and to protect it from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure.
Transfer of Information Overseas
We may transfer your information overseas where it is necessary to provide our services. For example, we sometimes use the Internet to collect and process information. In addition, some insurers or reinsurers are based overseas and we need to provide your personal information to them to arrange your cover. In most cases, we only do this with your consent.
Sale or Restructure of Business
In the future we may consider the sale or restructure of our business or the purchase of the business of other insurance brokers or financial advisers. In such circumstances it may be necessary for your personal information to be disclosed to permit the parties to assess the sale or restructure proposal for example through due diligence process.
We will only disclose such of your personal information if it is necessary for the assessment of any sale or restructure proposal and subject to appropriate procedures to maintain the confidentiality and security of your personal information. In the event that a sale or restructure proceeds, we will advise you accordingly.
Opting Out
If we sent you any information about services or products, or you do not want us to disclose your personal information to any other organisation (including related bodies corporate) you can opt out by contacting our Privacy Officer in writing.
Unless you notify Austbrokers Central Coast in writing otherwise, by proceeding to deal with us, you confirm on your behalf and/or on behalf of those you represent agreement to the above principles.
The Opt Out Process shall not apply to material issued through newsletters and important notices sent to clients and/or third parties since these materials contain information and notices relative to your insurance needs.
Access to Information
Clients shall have a ready means of being able to contact Austbrokers Central Coast to access their personal information, to confirm its correctness and to lodge requests for amendment of their records, where necessary.
Should you wish to access your personal information please contact our Privacy Officer, in writing, as per the details provided. Any requests for access to personal information shall be responded to, and supplied to within a period of thirty (30) days.
We reserve the right to charge a fee for costs and time incurred to process the request for personal information, including searching, preparing and distributing the personal information held.
Dispute Resolution & Complaints
We have established a dispute resolution procedure to deal with complaints and disputes regarding the information stored by us, and/or supplied to third parties. Our dispute resolution procedure shall allow for complaints to be dealt with by the Privacy Officer and provide the means to have the matter dealt with in a timely manner. Where a matter cannot be resolved within the period of thirty (30) days, the client and/or individual shall be kept informed of the progress of the dispute.
Privacy Officer
Austbrokers Central Coast has appointed a Privacy Officer with responsibility for:-
Overseeing the implementation of all privacy procedures and that the scheme is running effectively; Handling requests by clients for access to confidential and/or personal information; Handling complaints concerning the privacy laws; Reviewing the internal procedures for maintaining consistency of dealing in personal information and the keeping of appropriate records in a secure manner; Reviewing the internal procedures for maintaining the records of clients who elect not to receive marketing information.
You can visit our website without providing us with any personal information.
Anonymous data
We may use technology to collect anonymous information about the use of our website, for example when you browse our website our service provider logs your server address, the date and time of your visit, the pages and links accessed and the type of browser used. It does not identify you personally and we only use this information for statistical purposes and to improve the content and functionality of our website, to better understand our customers and markets and to improve our services.
Cookies
In order to collect this anonymous data we may use “cookies”. Cookies are small pieces of information which are sent to your browser and stored on your computer’s hard drive. Sometimes they identify users where the website requires information to be retained from one page to the next. This is purely to increase the functionality of the site. Cookies by themselves cannot be used to discover the identity of the user. Cookies do not damage your computer and you can set your browser to notify you when you receive a cookie so that you can decide if you want to accept it. Once you leave the site, the cookie is destroyed and no personal or other information about you is stored.
